Latinx Youth in First Contact with the Justice System: Trauma and Associated Behavioral Health Needs

Abstract

This study examines the prevalence of trauma exposure and its association with psychiatric symptoms, substance use, and sexual activity among First-Time Offending, Court-Involved Non-Incarcerated (FTO-CINI) Latinx youth. Latinx youth (N=181), ages 12-18, were recruited from a family court in the Northeastern region of the United States as part of a longitudinal cohort study of 423 FTO-CINI youth. Baseline data on trauma exposure and symptoms, psychiatric symptoms, substance use (alcohol/marijuana), and sexual activity among the Latinx sample were analyzed by age, gender, and offense type (status versus delinquent). Almost three-quarters of Latinx FTO-CINI youth reported lifetime trauma exposure. Almost half of Latinx youth reported lifetime marijuana use, 30% reported lifetime alcohol use, and 33% reported lifetime sexual activity. Females reported higher rates of internalizing symptoms and greater affect dysregulation. Traumaexposed youth were more likely than their non-exposed peers to have reported more externalizing symptoms; trauma-exposed females compared to trauma-exposed males reported more severe internalizing symptoms. Latinx FTO-CINI females may have different behavioral health needs than their male counterparts. Court-based screening and assessment practices should attend to the specific behavioral needs of this unique, underserved population.

Assessing Traumatic Experiences of Justice-Involved Latinx Youth A Systematic Review

“…Latinx youth involved in the justice system have been shown to endorse high rates of trauma exposure (Hoskins et al, 2019). Trauma exposure has been linked to unmet behavioral health needs (i.e., psychiatric symptoms, substance use, and sexual risk behaviors), and unmet behavioral health needs have been linked to recidivism.…”

“…In addition to Latinx youth being overrepresented at every intercept of the justice system (Winkelman et al, 2017), they have been shown to have unmet behavioral health needs (Hoskins et al, 2019). Trauma has also been shown to be an environmental condition that disproportionately affects Latinx youth (Hinton et al, 2013).…”

“…However, among Latinx youth who were arrested, females were arrested for 13.8% of violent crimes (i.e., murder, violent sex offense, robbery, and assault), 39.2% of larceny arrests, and 57.5% of runaway arrests (O ce of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 2012). Research has also shown that justice-involved Latinx females have more severe internalizing disorders (Hoskins et al, 2019) and lower rates of substance detected by urinalysis than Latinx males (46.1% versus 58.9%; McClelland et al, 2004). What still needs investigation is the underlying cause of these differences in the incarcerated Latinx youth population and how these underlying causes are related to their behavioral health needs (e.g., traumatic experiences).…”

Validação Preliminar da Versão Portuguesa do Child Trauma Screen em Adolescentes

“…O trauma pode influenciar de forma negativa o desenvolvimento biopsicossocial da criança (Alberto, 2014;Hoskins, Marshall, Koinis-Mitchell, Galbraith, & Tolou-Shams, 2019;Luthar, Crossman, & Small, 2015), sendo este, associado a doença física e mental na idade adulta (Freeman, 2014;Norman, Byambaa, De, Butchart, Scott, & Vos, 2012). Por tal, a exposição a Eventos Potencialmente Traumáticos (EPT) deve merecer a atenção dos investigadores e ser considerada um problema grave de saúde pública (Finkelhor, Turner, Shattuck, & Hamby, 2013;Lang, & Connell, 2017) que, preocupa não só os profissionais desta área, como também os da educação e justiça (Azevedo, & Maia, 2006), considerando os comportamentos apresentados pelos jovens: externalizantes (e.g., agressividade, impulsividade, baixo autocontrolo) e internalizantes (e. g., ansiedade, depressão, medo) (American Psychiatric Association, 2014;Hoskins et al, 2019;Lang, & Connell, 2018;Pechorro, Oliveira, Gonçalves, & Jesus, 2018;Pechorro, Pontes, DeLisi, Alberto, & Simões, 2018).…”

Text Messaging to Enhance Behavioral Health Treatment Engagement Among Justice-Involved Youth: Qualitative and User Testing Study

“…Court-involved, nonincarcerated (CINI) youth—those who are legally involved but living in the community—are also more likely to have psychiatric problems compared with general community adolescent samples; between one-third and one-half of this population has a diagnosable psychiatric condition [6]. In addition, 73% have some form of lifetime trauma exposure [7], and approximately 50% of first-time offending youth endorse lifetime marijuana use [8]. Despite high rates of behavioral health (mental health and substance use) disorders among justice-involved adolescents, only 15% of detained youth receive behavioral health treatment; this number falls to 8% once these youth reenter the community [2].…”